tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-38748470415159779642018-12-07T20:41:46.866+11:00Language and languages - AustraliaThis blog started with a series of online audio-conference seminars to celebrate the International Year of Languages in 2008. Many people who care about languages teaching and learning in Australia interacted online. The blog is now broader reflections about language and languages in life. Access archives by scrolling down the page. <b>Useful pro-languages quotations at lower left.</b> Phillip Mahnken, Sunshine Coast, AustraliaPhil Mahnkenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13390174717721508989noreply@blogger.comBlogger102125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3874847041515977964.post-9486857239650684322017-07-02T18:25:00.000+10:002017-07-02T18:29:39.712+10:00John le Carré Balm for languages teachers<div class="_1mwp _395 _1mwq _4c_p _5bu_ _34nd _21mu _5yk1" role="presentation" style="background: rgb(255, 255, 255); border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #1d2129; cursor: text; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; height: 106.989px; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 18px; min-height: 107px; outline: 0px; padding: 23px 48px 13px 12px; resize: none; text-align: left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; transition: 0.2s ease-in-out, 0.2s ease-in-out; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; word-wrap: break-word;"><span data-offset-key="a2971-0-0" style="font-family: inherit;"><span data-text="true" style="font-family: inherit;"><b>John le Carré Balm for languages teachers. </b>Novelist and ertwhile German teacher and diplomat, John le Carré, provides balm for the hearts of all languages teachers and encouragement of clear rational language in an age of madness. </span></span><br /><span data-offset-key="a2971-0-0" style="font-family: inherit;"><span data-text="true" style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/education/2017/jul/02/why-we-should-learn-german-john-le-carre" target="_blank">Why we should learn German</a></span></span></div>Phil Mahnkenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13390174717721508989noreply@blogger.com0Nambour QLD 4560, Australia-26.6236983 152.95877059999998-26.6804768 152.87808959999998 -26.5669198 153.03945159999998tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3874847041515977964.post-46997755392485083282015-04-15T23:56:00.001+10:002015-04-15T23:57:49.957+10:00Why Is English Spelling So Weird? <a href="http://mentalfloss.com/article/62995/why-english-spelling-so-weird" rel="" target="_blank">Why Is English Spelling So Weird?</a>&nbsp;a&nbsp;cute film with live human doing speeded up drawing about the history of English and its many contradictory origins. &nbsp;"<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: pragmatica-web, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 19.5px;">English spelling might seem crazy and unfair, but there are reasons for how it got to be that way. Here is the brief history, in words and pictures, of our weird spelling system and the people who made it." </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-size: 15px; line-height: 19.5px;">From Akira Okrent.&nbsp;</span></span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 19.5px;">Linguist, author of In the Land of Invented Languages, Chicago.&nbsp;</span></span>Phil Mahnkenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13390174717721508989noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3874847041515977964.post-81537852413115112722015-04-08T21:53:00.004+10:002015-04-08T21:53:54.571+10:00Words can make you sick. Or healed. Heavy or light.<a href="http://www.daniellelaporte.com/words-make-you-sick-or-healed/">Words can make you sick. Or healed. Heavy or light.</a>&nbsp;&nbsp;Here’s an experiment that might prove it.<br />"<a href="http://ctt.ec/CnZbP" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0.300000011920929px; -webkit-transition: color 0.3s ease; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #1154cc; font-family: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: justify; text-decoration: none; transition: color 0.3s ease; vertical-align: baseline; word-wrap: break-word;" target="_blank">Words create worlds because the universe is always listening.</a><span style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0.300000011920929px; background-color: white; color: #040404; font-family: 'BodoniStd Book'; line-height: 1.1em; text-align: justify;">&nbsp;"</span>Phil Mahnkenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13390174717721508989noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3874847041515977964.post-57595589262610564092015-04-08T21:36:00.000+10:002015-04-08T21:36:02.598+10:00A nation’s identity lives in its language<div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #141823; font-family: &quot;Helvetica&quot;,sans-serif; font-size: 9.0pt; line-height: 107%;">“A nation’s identity lives in its language ..&nbsp; a lot.” Tim Minchin on the documentary about Australian humour and comedy “Stop laughing … this is serious” 8 April 2015.</span></div>Phil Mahnkenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13390174717721508989noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3874847041515977964.post-37334684993340048932015-03-03T16:58:00.002+11:002015-03-03T16:58:52.618+11:00Robert Macfarlane on rewilding our language of landscape<a href="http://www.theguardian.com/books/2015/feb/27/robert-macfarlane-word-hoard-rewilding-landscape">The word-hoard: Robert Macfarlane on rewilding our language of landscape</a>. Ann Robertson pointed this out via Facebook. The article is reversing the normal expression and talking about "landscape linguistics" - the thousands of micro-terminologies for landscape features in languages around the world, including English dialects. As the world hyper-urbanises, all that old familiarity with animals, plants, soil, rain and creeks etc may be lost. It will create (is already creating) a different kind of human being (with different language of course for their experience) , ones who voluntarily live like the crew of Star Trek in a totally synthetic environment made of plastics, silicone, aluminium, steel. Go roll on the lawn, quick! Our grandchildren may not know the words "blade of glass tickling your back" or "worm hole" (except in science fiction).<br /><br />Something else language lovers will like. <a href="http://www.babbel.com/magazine/139-norse-words">The Vikings Are Coming!</a> by John-Erik Jordan. Phil Mahnkenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13390174717721508989noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3874847041515977964.post-67125366287650080792014-11-12T18:40:00.002+11:002014-11-12T18:40:44.254+11:009 Words With Totally Unexpected Origins<b><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com.au/words-with-interesting-etymologies-2013-10">9 Words With Totally Unexpected Origins</a></b>CHRISTINA STERBENZ OCT 18 2013 It's a year old but who cares, still fun. Phil Mahnkenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13390174717721508989noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3874847041515977964.post-15962972736452179542014-07-14T17:23:00.000+10:002014-07-14T17:23:23.351+10:00Denmark's education: two foreign languages compulsory, third available. <table border="1"><tbody><tr><td valign="top"><img src="http://www.crwflags.com/fotw/images/d/dk.gif" /></td><td><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Danish_Folkeskole_Education" target="_blank">Danish Folkeskole Education</a>Obligatory subjects<br />The teaching in the nine-year basic school covers the following subjects which are compulsory for all pupils: <b>Danish</b>, Christian studies — including in the oldest forms instruction in foreign religions and other philosophies of life, PE and sport, and mathematics during the entire 9-year period;<b>English and history from the 3rd to the 9th year</b>; music from the 1st to the 6th year; science from the 1st to the 6th year; art from the 1st to the 5th year; social studies from the 8th to the 9th year; geography and biology from the 7th to the 9th year; physics and chemistry in the 7th to 9th year; needlework, wood- or metalwork and cooking for one or more years between the 4th and 7th year.[3]</td></tr><tr></tr><tr><td colspan="2">The instruction in the basic school furthermore comprises the following obligatory topics: traffic safety, health and sex education and family planning as well as educational, vocational and labour market orientation. Optional subjects <b>The second foreign language, German or French, </b>must be offered in the 7th to 10th year. The following optional subjects and topics may be offered to the pupils in the 8th to 10th year: <b>French or German as a third foreign language</b>, wordprocessing, technology, media, art,photography, film, drama, music, needlework, wood- or metalwork, home economics, engine knowledge, other workshop subjects, and vocational studies. <b>Furthermore, Latin may be offered to the pupils in the 10th year</b>.<br />The teaching in the 10th form comprises the following subjects as obligatory subjects: <b>Danish, </b>mathematics, and <b>English to an extent corresponding to a total of 14 lessons a week (i.e. half of the minimum weekly teaching time). </b>Instruction must be offered in PE and sport, Christian studies and religious education, social studies and physics or chemistry. <b>Furthermore, pupils who have chosen German or French as second foreign language in the 7th to 9th years must be offered continued instruction in that subject in the 10th year.&nbsp;<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Danish_Folkeskole_Education">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Danish_Folkeskole_Education</a></b></td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"><b>My Comment&nbsp;</b></span><br /><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Ach du meine Güte, make all the excuses you like about the dismal state of languages education in Australia, but Denmark has just over a quarter our population in 43,094 square kilometres (16,639 sq miles)and does so much better. It's attitude of the society, and political will. And "just do it."</span>Phil Mahnkenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13390174717721508989noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3874847041515977964.post-25251966703135684262014-06-21T11:54:00.001+10:002014-07-14T17:03:05.345+10:00Speech was given us to disguise our thoughtsA pearl of wisdom in the Hobart Mercury newspaper of 1 October 1895 following excerpts from the Government Gazette: <br />"Speech was given us to disguise our thoughts, but you may preach till doomsday and then you will not disguise the fact that Jones' IXL Jams are the best in the world."<br /><span style="font-size: xx-small;">[THE GAZETTE. (1895, October 1). The Mercury (Hobart, Tas. : 1860 - 1954), p. 4. Retrieved February 16, 2012, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article9303123]</span><br /><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><br /></span>I love IXL's old, zany and tiny ads such as:<br /><br />EAT JONES' IXL JAMS. The total wealth of Great Britain with all her possessions is estimated at £8,000,000,000. France comes next with £7,500,000,000. The wealth of the six largest nations in the world aggregates £33,000,000,000. <span style="font-size: xx-small;">[EAT JONES' IXL JAMS. (1897, July 8) Launceston Examiner(Tas. : 1842 - 1899), p. 2. Retrieved June 21, 2014, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article39691687]</span><br /><span style="background-color: white; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 21.779998779296875px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><br /></span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 21.779998779296875px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">EAT JONES' ' IXL JAMS.</span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 21.779998779296875px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">&nbsp;"Lives there a man with soul so dead,</span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 21.779998779296875px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">&nbsp;who never to his wife has said-'Use</span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 21.779998779296875px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">&nbsp;BOROLEINE SOAP.' "</span><br /><span style="background-color: white; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 21.779998779296875px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">That's a pre-feminist puzzler. (</span><span style="font-size: xx-small;">http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article39691605)</span><br /><span style="background-color: white; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 21.779998779296875px;"><br /></span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 21.779998779296875px;">EAT JONES' ' IXL JAMS.&nbsp;</span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 21.779998779296875px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">Kid gloves, with hand-painted flowers</span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 21.779998779296875px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">&nbsp;on the back, are the latest fad in Paris.</span><br /><span style="font-size: xx-small;">(1897, July 10). Launceston Examiner (Tas. : 1842 - 1899), p. 8. Retrieved June 21, 2014, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article39691992</span><br /><br />The technique seems to be, we'll give you one extraneous fact to illuminate your life and you swallow our message and our jam, please. Reminds me of the outrageous, hilarious and high-production-value television advertisements coming out of Sweden lately. We'll give you a laugh or three; please buy our vacuum cleaners, Volvos and IKEA. <br /><br />Information on <a href="http://www.thehenryjones.com/abouthenryjones/whoishenryjones">Henry Jones, founder of IXL jams</a>. <br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>Phil Mahnkenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13390174717721508989noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3874847041515977964.post-15166706832712786682014-03-21T00:17:00.000+11:002014-07-14T17:39:07.092+10:00The Greeks understood: Happy is the enthusiast"The Greeks understood the mysterious power of the hidden side of things. They bequeathed to us one of the most beautiful words in our language—the word ‘enthusiasm’—en&nbsp;theos—a god within. The grandeur of human actions is measured by the inspiration from which they spring. Happy is he who bears a god within, and who obeys." ~Louis Pasteur"" Phil Mahnkenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13390174717721508989noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3874847041515977964.post-41994714798602160382014-03-19T12:02:00.004+11:002014-03-19T12:02:49.557+11:00What Languages Sound Like To Foreigners<div style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10px; min-height: 1px; padding: 0px;"><span style="font-size: 1.2em;">This is hilarious and intriguing and maybe even useful for studying prosodics. The <a href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2576393/Ever-wondered-sound-like-foreigner-Woman-speaks-gibberish-perfect-accent-unveil-mystery.html" target="_blank">Daily Mail</a> 19-03-2014 said: "A young woman has filmed herself speaking gibberish in a string of different accents to show how people speaking foreign languages sound - at least to her.&nbsp;</span><span style="font-size: 1.2em;">Nineteen-year-old Sara from Finland uses her remarkable skill for mimicry to show what different languages sound to foreigners who don't understand them.&nbsp;</span><span style="font-size: 1.2em;">Her caricatures are so good that, to anyone who doesn't know the languages she is imitating, she could almost be a fluent speaker." See also at YouTube and her second one on YouTube: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AB52rg9Y1Ac" target="_blank">What Languages Sound Like To Foreigners #2</a>&nbsp;The pumped up emotional reactions in the comments themselves show something: how much people care about the sound of their languages, and get defensive even about a joke, when they would normally not think about it consciously. (Same girl displaying her singing range: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3-ibBMYAsL4">One Girl, 14 Genres - Remix by Manu</a>) Career in linguistics, translation, film making or singing? Which one will pay best, I wonder?</span></div>Phil Mahnkenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13390174717721508989noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3874847041515977964.post-86134939621681761462013-12-15T16:55:00.000+11:002013-12-15T16:55:06.990+11:00Untranslatable Words - language, thought and culture<h3><a href="http://9gag.com/gag/ajrVP9p?ref=fb.s">Untranslatable Words, shows a lot about different cultures</a></h3><div>This is a fun pop version with cute pictures.</div><div>Lera Boroditsky's&nbsp;<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cPGpZp1pfQQ" target="_blank">How Language Shapes Thought</a>&nbsp;is the real thing. And her</div><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I8uUjtiaXqE" target="_blank">Dreaming in Different Tongues: Languages and the Way We Think</a>Phil Mahnkenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13390174717721508989noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3874847041515977964.post-19585349917961632372013-11-25T13:20:00.000+11:002013-11-25T13:20:34.434+11:00Irra Wangga Language Centre <a href="http://www.bundiyarra.org.au/index.php?page=irra_wangga_language_centre"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"> Irra Wangga Language Centre</span></a><br /><div style="background-color: white; padding: 0px;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: 12px;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: 12px;">"The Irra Wangga Language Program is a professional Aboriginal-directed program, working both with and for the community. Staff at Irra Wangga are passionate about the preservation, revitalisation and maintenance of Aboriginal languages and culture, and it is this passion that drives the program. " [Thanks to John Bass for pointing out this site.]<br /></span><br /><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: 12px;">This makes me think: you can have stunning academic expertise about languages and linguistics but it is feeling for language, loving it like your patch of land and your family, respecting it for all its carries of your people's lives and thoughts and history, that makes a living language. Because you are living in it and through it. Just using it day in and day out for practical and emotional life. It is not just an inert, abstract system. It is identity, it expresses who people are and what people do. Its living nature also makes learning the languages of others all the more difficult, demanding and delightfully rewarding. &nbsp;Phil Mahnken</span></div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: calibri, arial, sans-serif; padding: 0px;"><br /></div>Phil Mahnkenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13390174717721508989noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3874847041515977964.post-87059513544150503092013-11-07T10:34:00.003+11:002013-11-07T10:34:59.201+11:00At the end of the day, it is what it is."... at the end of the day it can’t be helped, language changes, language extends and cross-pollinates, mainly through pretentious eejits carrying weird-sounding words across oceans and then it becomes something different, and then well what can you say but it is what it is, in all honesty?"<br /><br /><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">* Ivan Nahem is a writer and yoga teacher; he lives in Woodside, Queens.</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><br style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" /><br style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" />Read more:&nbsp;<a href="http://www.irishcentral.com/roots/-Top-ten-Irish-expressions-an-American-picked-up-living-there-184247911.html#ixzz2juYJHP3P" style="color: #003399; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">Top ten Irish expressions an American picked up living there</a>&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; <a href="http://www.irishcentral.com/">IrishCentral</a></span><br /><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><br /></span><br />Phil Mahnkenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13390174717721508989noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3874847041515977964.post-71897057887161650812013-10-02T15:52:00.000+10:002013-10-02T15:52:09.228+10:00<b><a href="http://listverse.com/2012/12/22/10-quirky-but-cool-uses-of-english/">10 Quirky But Cool Uses of English</a>&nbsp;by&nbsp;</b> MIKAEL LEVIN DECEMBER 22, 2012 (Thanks to Annie Robertson for pointing this out.) &nbsp;e.g.&nbsp; <span style="color: #666666;">I've had a perfectly wonderful evening, but this wasn’t it. </span>Phil Mahnkenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13390174717721508989noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3874847041515977964.post-64282511061188295902013-09-19T00:41:00.005+10:002013-11-07T10:41:41.093+11:00Language is not harmless ... but can be health giving<span style="background-color: whitesmoke; color: #5a5a5a; font-family: 'Open Sans', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 16px;"><b>Language is not harmless. It is through language that unspeakable horrors against blacks, women, Jews, and others were justified.</b> [...]&nbsp;</span><span style="background-color: whitesmoke; color: #5a5a5a; font-family: 'Open Sans', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 16px;">As historian Marjorie Spiegel notes</span><span style="background-color: whitesmoke; color: #5a5a5a; font-family: 'Open Sans', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 16px;">, throughout history, when oppressors wanted to target a particular group, they used language to prepare the population for the coming destruction. Slavery was accepted because the terminology used to describe black people — mad dogs, coons, apes — did such a powerful job of turning humans beings into something 'other' that it was not considered a crime to sell them into bondage. [...]&nbsp;</span><span style="background-color: whitesmoke; color: #5a5a5a; font-family: 'Open Sans', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 16px;">These are our teachable moments. It is through our reaction to these incidents that we can finally turn the fantasy of how we Australians perceive ourselves into the reality of a tolerant and equal nation. &nbsp;</span><br /><span id="MainContent_litTitle"><a href="http://www.eurekastreet.com.au/article.aspx?aeid=36497" target="_blank">McGuire ape gaffe exposes Australian tolerance as myth</a>&nbsp;</span><em style="background-color: whitesmoke; color: #5a5a5a; font-family: 'Open Sans', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 16px;">Ruby Hamad &nbsp;in Eureka Street&nbsp;</em><span style="background-color: whitesmoke; color: #5a5a5a; font-family: 'Open Sans', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 16px;">30 May 2013&nbsp;</span><br /><span style="background-color: whitesmoke; color: #5a5a5a; font-family: 'Open Sans', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 16px;"><br /></span><span style="background-color: whitesmoke; color: #5a5a5a; font-family: 'Open Sans', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 16px;">Here's an example from two very different countries using language in devious and dangerous ways:</span><br /><span style="background-color: whitesmoke; color: #333333; font-family: 'Open Sans', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;"><br /></span><span style="background-color: whitesmoke; color: #333333; font-family: 'Open Sans', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;">Second, the issue is being misrepresented in Indonesia. Reporting on the Abbott visit, the Indonesian media have repeatedly described asylum seekers as illegal immigrants using the Indonesian term&nbsp;</span><em style="background-color: whitesmoke; color: #333333; font-family: 'Open Sans', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;">imigran gelap</em><span style="background-color: whitesmoke; color: #333333; font-family: 'Open Sans', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;">.&nbsp;</span><em style="background-color: whitesmoke; color: #333333; font-family: 'Open Sans', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;">Gelap</em><span style="background-color: whitesmoke; color: #333333; font-family: 'Open Sans', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;">&nbsp;means dark and suggests activity that is shadowy and suspicious. The Abbott Government </span><span style="background-color: whitesmoke; font-family: 'Open Sans', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;"><span style="color: blue;">uses similar language</span></span><span style="background-color: whitesmoke; color: #333333; font-family: 'Open Sans', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px;"> and is happy to see the issue defined this way. It allows a humanitarian and human rights issue to be reduced to one of criminality, justifies tough action and absolves one of a duty of care for those legitimately seeking sanctuary. Pat Walsh&nbsp;</span><a href="http://eurekastreet.com.au/article.aspx?aeid=38290#.Uk4WedJqA6Y">Abbott's mixed messages for Indonesia</a> in Eureka Street 2 October 2013<br /><br />Costa Georgiadis, the Greek-Aussie gardening &amp; waste recycling prophet, reckons <b>if you want to change culture, you have to change thinking and to change thinking you have to change the vocabulary people use</b>. Costa looks at the positive health giving uses of language that leads us to do good things for ourselves. Stop saying trash, rubbish or garbage, to be dumped. Say "waste" and we think : "We are making this waste, we are responsible for <b>our </b>waste and we can recycle our waste." Orwell wrote about the sinister, harmful side of thought control through language. Wittgenstein said "<span style="background-color: white; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 19.1875px;">Philosophy is a battle against the bewitchment of our intelligence by means of our language." We all know this. Buddhists say we should be mindful of every moment and every word and every thought. Hard work!</span><br /><span style="background-color: whitesmoke; color: #5a5a5a; font-family: 'Open Sans', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 16px;"><br /></span><span style="color: #5a5a5a; font-family: Open Sans, Helvetica Neue, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><span style="line-height: 16px;">I find it interesting to compare our attitudes and vocabulary with that of the USA. Have a look at this page about the <a href="http://www.ferris.edu/jimcrow/who.htm" target="_blank">origins and meaning of Jim Crow</a> at the Ferris University's Jim Crow Museum of Racist Memorabilia. That same university's brief pages promoting languages learning (only two: <a href="http://catalog.ferris.edu/programs/336/">Spanish</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="http://catalog.ferris.edu/programs/438/">French</a>) and their page on their <a href="http://ferris.edu/festivalofnations">Festival of Nations&nbsp;</a><span style="color: #5a5a5a; font-family: 'Open Sans', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: x-small; line-height: 16px;">stand in stark contrast to America's colonial, segregated and racist past. I wonder whether their take up rates for these language programs and intercultural activities are any better than ours.&nbsp;</span></span></span>Phil Mahnkenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13390174717721508989noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3874847041515977964.post-89252339076129950522013-09-18T16:56:00.001+10:002013-09-18T16:56:28.858+10:00Rhythm link to language ability - and so much more.&nbsp; &nbsp;On our visit to Caloundra Primary School yesterday, I noticed six top hats pasted on the window and six labels about Edward de Bono's different problem solving &amp; learning strategies. I commented to my travelling companion that it always seems to me that second language learning calls on so many different dimensions of mind, e.g.&nbsp;all sorts of memory of course;&nbsp;logic for grammar; acting ability for imitating accents and emotional delivery; awareness and control of rhythm and intonation to get the music of the language right; interpersonal and cultural sensitivity for the pragmatics of relationships though another language; emotional dispositions such as persistence and patience so that you allow yourself to go through a long apprenticeship and not be turned off because you do not understand all immediately; and more. Baroness Finchley once stated that it takes 200 brain centres working in coordination to put together that miracle called language competence.<br />&nbsp; &nbsp;It's a complex universe and life. It takes a complex code to represent it. It takes a complex brain to master that code which is also a social and always evolving phenomenon. I think that diversity of components is what makes L2 learning so rewarding and, for some, so challenging. Perhaps similar challenges, but much richer authentic purposeful input, exist for first language acquisition too.<br />&nbsp; &nbsp;I so wish foreign languages teachers had the time and opportunities to really train properly for their complex jobs (they don't in Australia -they should have specialised degrees - if lucky they get one or two courses in a DipEd) ... and to prepare properly in their jobs (they don't) to take advantage of all the huge range of life situations and mental-emotional faculties that language calls on.<br />&nbsp; &nbsp;That's what this short newspaper article&nbsp;<a href="http://www.news.com.au/breaking-news/world/rhythm-link-to-language-ability/story-e6frfkui-1226722036937">Rhythm link to language ability</a>&nbsp;sent by Heather Kopp made me think&nbsp;... when I should be finalising exams, revamping courses or marking.Phil Mahnkenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13390174717721508989noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3874847041515977964.post-49924139251193087852013-09-16T17:39:00.001+10:002013-09-16T17:42:02.020+10:00Free Sample Articles from ACTFL<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Free&nbsp;<a href="http://www.actfl.org/publications/all/the-language-educator/sample-articles">Sample Articles from ACTFL</a> the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (ACTFL).&nbsp; This looks good OCTOBER 2012 <a href="http://www.actfl.org/sites/default/files/pdfs/TLE_pdf/TLE_Oct12_Article.pdf">Going for 90% Plus: How to Stay in the Target Language</a> or from August 2012 <a href="http://www.actfl.org/sites/default/files/pdfs/TLE_pdf/TLE_Aug12_Article.pdf">Beyond Requirements: Why Do Students Continue with Language Study?</a>&nbsp;Check out ACTFL webinars and other activities, they are on <a href="https://www.facebook.com/actfl">Facebook</a>.</span>Phil Mahnkenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13390174717721508989noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3874847041515977964.post-71016229500886580602013-06-06T17:34:00.000+10:002013-06-06T17:34:01.082+10:00Turning 'Otherness' Into an Asset<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15.454545021057129px; line-height: 20px;">Margaret Mead famously wrote about the profound changes wrought by the Second World War: “All of us who grew up before the war are immigrants in time, immigrants from an earlier world, living in an age essentially different from anything we knew before.” The same applies to thinking about the future; we all need to be looking at the future with the immigrant’s eyes, willing to discover a new land, learn a new language, a new way of doing things. &nbsp;</span><a href="http://www.linkedin.com/today/post/article/20130605193235-4739-turning-otherness-into-an-asset" target="_blank">Turning 'Otherness' Into an Asset</a> June 05, 2013 Marina G. Executive Director, Institute for the FuturePhil Mahnkenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13390174717721508989noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3874847041515977964.post-78104094829426151612013-03-29T17:34:00.000+11:002013-03-29T17:34:40.202+11:00Word hunters<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-xESjz1uYCdE/UVUz9B87xcI/AAAAAAAACtI/8Jgfu_OAhUA/s1600/word+hunters+-+the+curious+dictionary.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-xESjz1uYCdE/UVUz9B87xcI/AAAAAAAACtI/8Jgfu_OAhUA/s320/word+hunters+-+the+curious+dictionary.jpeg" /></a>This sort of novel may help seed linguistic curiosity in the young.<br /><br /><b>Word Hunters - The Curious Dictionary</b><br /><h4><span style="color: #444444;">'While stories build from words, it’s true,&nbsp;</span><span style="color: #444444;">The words themselves have stories too.&nbsp;</span><span style="color: #444444;">Who dares to read? Who dares to look?&nbsp;</span><span style="color: #444444;">Who dares to hunt within this book?'&nbsp;</span></h4>An action-packed adventure story filled with humour, excitement and mysteries to solve, Word Hunters: The Curious Dictionary is sure to capture the imagination of children with an interest in history and language. Described as a ‘word nerd adventure’, the story winds through history showing how words evolve over time, such as tracking ‘hello’ back through time to ‘Ah, Rou’ in Rouen, France in 925. Visit the <a href="http://www.wordhunters.com.au/">Word Hunters website</a>.<br /><br />Quoting from <a href="http://www.kids-bookreview.com/2012/09/review-word-hunters-curious-dictionary.html" target="_blank">http://www.kids-bookreview.com/2012/09/review-word-hunters-curious-dictionary.html</a>Phil Mahnkenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13390174717721508989noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3874847041515977964.post-61680081864341240042013-03-28T19:16:00.000+11:002013-03-31T19:17:15.670+11:00Lingua Franca finale: "Unbreak my heart" The very <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/linguafranca/rn-summer-series2c-part-53a/4437968" target="_blank">last Lingua Franca radio program</a> replayed a program on morphology, especially the prefix un- in pop songs. "Unchain my heart" is right. "Unbreak my heart" is a rule breaker or linguistic special effect. You can't un-give someone a ring. Why not?<br />How come you can be hurt by an unknown assailant but you can't unknow or undiscover or unthink things or uncry your tears .... Why not?<br />How come we know intuitively what verbs we can un- and which ones we can't. This final 26 January 2013 Lingua Franca was triggered by the words of the popsong, 'Unbreak my Heart'. The reknowned grammarian and former keyboard player in the soul group the Ram Jam Band, Geoff Pullum, uncovered the reversing 'un'-cryptotype while visiting Australia.<br />&nbsp; <b>The entire <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/linguafranca/">Lingua Franca</a> series</b> is available online as transcripts and audio files. Wonderful stimulating fodder for language lovers. Thanks to the <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/">Australian Broadcasting Commission</a> and Maria Zijlstra.Phil Mahnkenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13390174717721508989noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3874847041515977964.post-36122958544048883282013-02-22T14:37:00.001+11:002013-02-22T14:39:14.309+11:00Every language is an old-growth forest of the mind<span style="font-family: Tahoma, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 20px;">I believe we need to think about how a language dies. When you consider all that died with Bo Senior, it is sobering. As National Geographic Explorer Wade Davis has said, ““A language is not just a body of vocabulary or a set of grammatical rules. … Every language is an old-growth forest of the mind.” In other words, there was much more that died with Bo Senior than just a compilation of phonetics and phonemes. A history of a people of the world with all its stories and wisdom died too. It would seem that, as with the extinction of an endangered species, when a language dies, it leaves our world a little less charming and a lot less educated. </span><a href="http://languages.com/2013/02/21/how-does-a-language-die/" style="font-family: Tahoma, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 20px;">How does a Language die?</a><span style="font-family: Tahoma, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 20px;"> February 21st 2013 in Academy, Languages, Linguistics, One World. Also </span><a href="http://languages.com/2013/02/12/speaking-the-language-of-your-grandparents/" style="font-family: Tahoma, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 20px;">Speaking the language of your grandparents</a>. <i>Though Boa had no one to talk to in her native language she was often sighted talking to birds in her language as she maintained that birds were her ancestors and understood her.</I> OBITUARY for Boa Senior, died 26th January, 2010, last speaker of Bo language. Phil Mahnkenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13390174717721508989noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3874847041515977964.post-18249430653337671872012-12-19T19:13:00.000+11:002012-12-19T19:13:52.848+11:00Just six words, and I had already fallen in love with foreign languages.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-yNOA8qIvS68/UNF137pr7FI/AAAAAAAACk8/L987C_EE7Pg/s1600/kiah_yui_akane.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="Kiah, Yui, Akane and cherry blossom time" border="0" height="240" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-yNOA8qIvS68/UNF137pr7FI/AAAAAAAACk8/L987C_EE7Pg/s320/kiah_yui_akane.jpg" title="" width="320" /></a></div>Every teacher has students who just do everything you could hope for. I'm not talking about just those who become language teachers (would I wish that on them?) I'm talking about those who clearly love the language, and all it can bring them, who catch on, get the bug, persist, pursue it and use it in all sorts of professional or personal paths. <a href="http://your.usc.edu.au/wacana/lombok/chelsea_2012.html">Chelsea </a>is one, now working for a development agency. Kiah now living in Japan is another, a language addict who studied both Indonesian and Japanese to advanced levels, worked and struggled in poverty as a student, got herself to both countries. And like me, it puzzles and concerns her that Australians in their droves turn off and turn away from study of other languages. Read <a href="http://ameblo.jp/foreign-cherry/entry-11429676920.html">Kiah's blog post in Japanese</a> if you can <i>(google translate does a hopeless job on rendering it in English. See, we need humans to learn each other's languages.)</i> Kiah has translated it into English for us.<br /><hr /><b>Australia's Big Problem.</b> Recently I haven’t written a blog, so I thought I would write a blog about a topic that’s important to me today.<br />Recently I have been emailing my Indonesian professor from when I was a university student about ‘the importance of studying foreign languages.’ The number of students in Australia studying foreign languages is decreasing rapidly. There are too few language teachers, and interest in foreign languages is also being lost.<br />‘Why should I study foreign languages? Everyone should just speak English!’ I have met many Australians who ask these questions.<br />Why has this type of thinking sprung up? Is it because Australia is separated from other countries? Is it because English is the easiest language to learn? (This is definitely untrue. People who think this have clearly never studied English as a second language.) Why is the study of foreign languages so hated?<br />When I was in primary school (year 4 I believe) I first experienced studying a foreign language. At my primary school, students had to study Indonesian from year 4 to year 7. The first thing I learnt was:<br /><br />Siapa nama Anda?<br />Nama saya Haruko.<br /><br />(What is your name?<br />My name is Haruko)<br />Just six words, and I had already fallen in love with foreign languages. The reason why was because, by using completely different words, I could still express the same meaning. To a fourth grade me, that was cool!<br />From that day till now, I still love studying foreign languages. When I started high school, I continued studying Indonesian but I started wanting to learn another language. At my school library I found a Japanese textbook and started teaching myself. Studying Japanese was fun, so when I started university I made Japanese and Indonesian my majors. Thanks to studying foreign languages, when I was in university, I was able to do student exchanges to universities in both Japan and Indonesia.<br />Thanks to studying foreign languages, I have made many friends, I have experienced other cultures, and have many good memories. If I only spoke English, I don’t think I would have been able to experience the things I have. *** Research and papers on the advantages of learning foreign languages have been done, yet there are still Australian youth who say ‘I don’t want to study languages.’ It’s not only the fault of their attitudes. As there aren’t many language teachers in Australia, there isn’t consistency in the languages taught.<br />Example: My primary school taught Indonesian. The closest high school to my primary school also taught Indonesian. However, the primary schools in the next district taught Japanese and Chinese, therefore when those students began at our high school, they suddenly had to study year 8 Indonesian. Many students dropped Indonesian because it was too difficult. When I started high school there were over 100 students (in year 8) who were studying Indonesian. By the time I graduated high school, there were only five students (including myself) still studying Indonesian.<br />This problem is a nation-wide problem. This year the Australian Government released the ‘White Paper.’ In it is written that from now they will have Asian languages studied in schools. In particular: Japanese, Indonesian, Hindi and Chinese.<br />These four languages are important to Australia. However, because there are few language teachers and students’ attitudes towards languages are so poor, how are they going to properly teach these languages?<br />As far as I know, there are no schools teaching Hindi. Of course there are people who speak Hindi, so they can become teachers, but it will take time. The government wants students to start studying languages as soon as possible, but because it will take time, how will they fix the current problems? How will they get students to study languages to an advanced level? We need to answer these kinds of questions.<br />(I apologize for this blog post being so long. I will finish here and next time I’ll write about my attitudes towards foreign languages, my memories and what I get out of it.Phil Mahnkenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13390174717721508989noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3874847041515977964.post-20907797140341110692012-12-11T12:18:00.000+11:002012-12-11T12:18:13.891+11:00How did Jacky Chan learn English?<br />Ellen: How did you learn English? You taught yourself English, right?<br />Jacky Chan: Yes.<br />Ellen: How did you learn?<br />Jacky Chan: By the song!<br />Ellen: What song?<br />Jacky Chan: Oh, all kind of song. Before, I tried to listen, I watch TV but I cannot repeat. So I buy cassette, oh, I'm talking about long time ago, no DVD, CD, cassette, the cassette, the country song! You know like Willie Nelson, so and so. And when you hear the song: <i>[sings] </i>"You are always on my mind, you are always on my mind."<i> [audience claps.]</i> Then, oh! Then I can talk to the girls, you know.<br />Ellen: Right, and when we come back, you are actually a very popular singer, and uh, like, one of your songs was downloaded 500 million times! So, when we come back, Jacky's going to sing for us.<br /><i>Jackie Chan Ellen DeGeneres Interview 8/01/2010 (Full)</i><br /><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ZxPKOzl6Q8">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ZxPKOzl6Q8</a><br />Comment on YouTube page:<br />Jackie Talking: *accent*<br />Jackie﻿ Singing: *no accent*<br />Phil Mahnkenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13390174717721508989noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3874847041515977964.post-29082565779059665052012-11-09T17:56:00.001+11:002012-11-09T17:56:34.684+11:00My war of independence with American English<b style="background-color: white; color: #7b7b7b; font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10px; line-height: 12px;">By&nbsp;<a href="http://blogs.independent.co.uk/author/tom-greaney/" rel="author" style="color: #7b7b7b; text-decoration: initial;" title="Posts by Tom Greaney">Tom Greaney</a></b><br /><br /><div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 1.3em; line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 10px; padding: 0px;">My voice is my identity. In a foreign land it defines me. I open my mouth and people know where I am from. I’ve been in America for over a year now and it looks like I will be here for the foreseeable but I have one major fear: Americanisms.</div><div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 1.3em; line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 10px; padding: 0px;">I’m not knocking the way our American friends speak. Good luck to them. But I’m from Reading in England. And I want to sound as if I’m from Reading in England. <a href="http://blogs.independent.co.uk/2012/04/27/my-war-of-independence-with-american-english/" target="_blank">More</a></div>Phil Mahnkenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13390174717721508989noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3874847041515977964.post-79476650075945048992012-11-02T01:30:00.005+11:002012-11-02T01:31:47.503+11:00Australia Asia Research and Education Foundation (AAREF)<div><span class="hP" style="padding-right: 10px;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;"><span style="color: blue;"><a href="http://aaref.com.au/" style="color: #1155cc;" target="_blank">http://aaref.com.au/</a>&nbsp;&nbsp;</span></span></span><span class="hP" style="padding-right: 10px;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Please check out a new venture pioneered by my inspirational former teacher and supervisor, Dr Thao Le. He writes: "</span></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">We are so privileged to have Professor Noam Chomsky (MIT, USA) and Professor&nbsp;Teun<a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=3874847041515977964" style="color: #1155cc;"></a>&nbsp;Van&nbsp;Dijk<a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=3874847041515977964" style="color: #1155cc;"></a>&nbsp;to join our list of&nbsp;</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Honorary Professors."</span></div>Phil Mahnkenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13390174717721508989noreply@blogger.com0